


frayed strings of fate

by dvntldr



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Eating Disorders, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Insomnia, Sad, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Harm, no beta we die like men, reverse au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-02-23
Updated: 2019-02-23
Packaged: 2019-11-04 08:27:02
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,761
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17894999
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dvntldr/pseuds/dvntldr
Summary: “Lieutenant Anderson?”Connor jumped at the feeling of pressure on his shoulder, hand moving to his holster as he slid out of his seat and drew the gun at...an android?-What would you get if you took Connor and Hank and swapped their personalities and lives?This. You get this.





	1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

———————

[Connor’s POV]

 

His fingers flew over the keyboard rapidly, typing up a report for the latest case he’d closed. Connor sent it in after a few moments, taking a gulp of his latte before checking for any open cases. Exhaustion was beginning to sink in—his limbs were abnormally heavy, weariness bone-deep, but as usual he chose to brush it aside. His stomach was growling incessantly, but then that was as per normal.

 

“Lieutenant Anderson?”

 

Connor jumped at the feeling of pressure on his shoulder, hand moving to his holster as he slid out of his seat and drew the gun at...an android?

 

“Why the hell did you touch me?” He barked, holding the gun admirably steadily, considering the scare he’d gotten. To its credit, the android didn’t flinch, coolly staring back at him with electric-blue eyes that seemed to pierce Connor, all the way down to his soul. He held back a shudder—Cyberlife was making their androids way too fucking lifelike.

 

“My apologies, Lieutenant. I simply wanted to get your attention and went about it in an inappropriate manner. My name is Hank and I’m the android sent by Cyberlife.” Connor’s hand trembled from adrenaline as he returned the gun to its holster, sweeping the unruly lock of curly hair away from his face with a weak glare. 

 

“Yeah, okay. Just don’t—come near. Sorry, I’m...I’m just jumpy right now.” Connor turned back to his computer, chest still heaving, and opened a fresh case file, trying to ignore the burning presence of the android that was still standing behind him. Paranoia getting the best of him after a few more minutes of feeling Hank staring holes in his back, he finally turned to tell the android to _ bugger off _ , for lack of a better term, before a voice blared out onto the intercom.

 

”Connor, get in my office, now! Bring the android.” Connor gave the android—what was its name? Hank?—a wary look, grabbing his coffee and standing as he motioned for it to follow him, Hank falling into step behind him easily.

 

Entering the office, he dropped into the offered seat unceremoniously, giving the man on the other side of the desk a hard stare. “What, Fowler? I have cases to solve.” He snapped. The Captain gave him a considering look, making him grit his teeth.

 

“No you don’t. You closed all the cases I gave you, and  _ no _ , I’m not giving you any more. You need to eat something, for fuck’s sake, I’m not having you pass out again just because you’re overworking yourself.”

 

Connor bared his teeth in a vicious snarl, hating the fact that Fowler was revealing all this information to the android next to him. “My eating habits are none of your business,  _ Captain _ .”

 

“It is when you haven’t moved from your desk in the past three days. Don’t think I don’t know, the cameras caught you working through all the nights. Not fucking  _ once _ did you go to get yourself food, and I know that it’s been more than a week since you’ve eaten anything. You could get in trouble for that, you know; nobody’s allowed to stay past their work hours.”

 

Connor narrowed his eyes. Oh, he did  _ not _ like being patronised. “Fine! Whatever, I’ll eat later, okay? What is the android doing here, anyways?” He demanded, brows knitting in anger and confusion.

 

“Hank here is a prototype, first of its model. It was sent here to be tested under duress to see how its kinks can be worked out for the completed, store-ready version. It’s going to be your partner—“

 

Connor snapped.

 

“Don’t do me dirty like this, Fowler! You know I hate the the things!” Fowler glared right back at the lieutenant, eyes hard and cold.

 

“Jesus, Connor, I’ve given you three fucking years to get over your goddamn issues! Get yourself together! You either take the android or leave your fucking badge on my desk!”

 

Connor switched tactics all of a sudden, looking desperate and furious at the same time. “Look, Jeffrey, you know about—Please, I can’t. Just assign it to Reed or something.”

 

“You know I can’t do that. Reed would smash it up.”

 

“I would, too! Fuck, please, I’ll eat, okay? Three meals a goddamn day, I’ll sleep in my bed for once, just  _ don’t _ …”

 

Fowler sighed, eyes finally softening to something that resembled sympathy as he eyed the visibly-distraught male. “I’m sorry, Connor. Higher-ups have ordered it, I’ve got no say in the matter. After this one case is over, it’ll be sent back to Cyberlife.”

 

Connor ignored the familiar burn of tears, accidentally crushing the coffee cup in his grasp. The cardboard folded easily, splashing hot coffee all over his hand, but the lieutenant didn’t react.

 

“You know what?  _ Fuck _ you, and fuck this stupid robot!” He glared at the android heatedly before storming out, dropping the empty coffee cup on the Captain’s office floor, brown liquid trickling out lazily. 

 

He grabbed his coat from his desk in a sharp, jerky movement that had most of the precinct turning to stare at him and, ignoring the curious, pity-filled stares, stalked hurriedly towards his car. Getting in, he slumped against the steering wheel, tears finally slipping down his face as he gave himself five seconds to break down.

 

Five.

 

_ Gunshots ringing in his ears, his feet pounding against the stone floors, adrenaline coursing through his veins, a single thought burning like a star in his mind (find Richard find your brother help him  _ save _ him)- _

 

Four.

 

_ “ _ Richard _! Richard, where are you?” A voice,  _ his  _ voice, screaming, begging, choked with sobs, tasting his own bitter, desperate cries- _

 

Three.

 

_ His chest constricting at the sight of fresh blood soaking his shoes, shoes his brother had bought him last Christmas, no no  _ no  _ Richard can’t leave him he can’t he just can’t  _ PLEASE _ - _

 

Two.

 

_ Skidding to a stop and dropping to his knees, vision blurring with hot tears, tears that run down his face as he flounders, not knowing what to do (where’s Richard, where’s the person who keeps him calm when he’s panicking and watches over him?) without his partner—this is  _ Richard _ , this is his  _ brother _ , this is the person who’s raised him and loved him and took care of him all his life and he’s not moving and he’s bleeding out on the floor and he’s gon- _

 

One. 

 

He wiped his tears away and floored it.


	2. the beginning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> tw://self-harm  
> kenfkdk constructive criticism is welcomed and sorely needed

**Chapter Two**

———————

[Hank’s POV]

 

The android walked up to the Lieutenant’s house, eyeing the door for a few moments before trying it. When it didn’t give, he touched the window, calculating how much force he would need to break the latch.

 

Quickly breaking it off, he gracefully slinked through it, about to find the Lieutenant before a low growl stopped him. The dog looked ferocious, amber eyes locked onto him, hackles raised and teeth bared. Her fur was a pure, snowy white, and his processors informed him that it was a German Shepherd.

 

**[O]ATTACK**

**[ >X]SOOTHE**

**[△]DISTRACT**

 

“Easy, girl.” He soothed, reaching out slowly as he scanned his memory chip for any indication of her name. Suddenly, a post-it on the fridge caught his attention. 

 

‘ _ Bring Aki to groomer’ _

 

🔓 **[☐] NAME**

 

“Aki? Is that your name?” The dog seemed slightly more appeased at the sound of her name, warily regarding the android. She seemed antsy, but perhaps it was just Aki’s normal personality?

 

The dog barked at him before running off, Hank following curiously. What was it doing? Aki scratched at the bedroom door, howling. Hank’s LED cycled an uneasy yellow as his processors picked up on a blood trail leading from the bathroom to the now shut bedroom.

 

_ Drip. _

 

The faint noise startled Hank for a few moments, his eyes flicking back to the bathroom to see if the sound had originated from there; there  _ was  _ blood snaking downwards from the sink and gathering in a dark puddle, but this sound was muted, as if it was echoing from beyond the bedroom. 

 

_ Drip _ .  _ Drip _ .

 

“Lieutenant Anderson? Could you kindly open the door?”

He rapped the door smartly, with no reply. After a few minutes of continued silence, he bit his lip, an extremely human-esque motion. 

 

**PRIMARY MISSION: Capture Deviants**

**SECONDARY MISSION: Locate Jericho**

**TERTIARY MISSION: Speak to Lieutenant Anderson**

 

Making an impromptu decision, Hank broke the door’s handle with calculated force, opening the door in a brisk motion. Immediately a metallic scent was picked up by his systems. Hank rushed in, LED blinking a bright red at the sight of Lieutenant Anderson, face-down on his bed and not moving. 

 

He quickly moved to the human’s side, checking his pulse and relaxing ever so slightly when he saw that it was only slowed. Blood soaked the sheets, a knife strewn out on the floor haphazardly, but he ignored them, focused on stopping the blood flow from the human’s forearms. His protocols told him that the wounds were not life-threatening at the moment, but they  _ were _ unusually deep, and one mistake might cost Lieutenant Anderson his life.

 

“Lieutenant Anderson? Wake up, you cannot fall asleep!” He stated, urgency in his tone, but the Lieutenant was dead to the world. He carefully took ahold of the human’s hands, noting the subtle flinch.

 

“Connor? It’s me, Hank. You need to open your eyes.” Slowly, the officer’s eyes opened, dark pools of chocolate blinking up at him in exhausted confusion.

 

“What…”

 

“Lieutenant, you are losing a lot of blood. Where is your first aid kit located?” The human shook his head, as if to clear his mind. He was obviously disoriented, confused about what was happening, but alert enough to respond to Hank’s questions.

 

“Uh...drawer.” He mumbled out, Hank quickly taking action and grabbing it, hands flying swiftly to pull out the bandages before wrapping it tightly around the self-inflicted wounds.

 

He helped the human to the bathroom, the android mindful of the blood pooled on the floor as he carefully stepped over it, the liquid still dripping lazily from the sink. “I will get you a change of clothes. Please, freshen up.”

 

He turned to leave, dismissing the pang of worry that struck him at leaving the clearly self-destructive human on his own as he picked out one of the suits Lieutenant Anderson usually wore.

 

He eyed the room for a few more moments as a new mission popped up in his directory.

 

**SIDE MISSION: Learn more about Lieutenant Anderson**

 

He began to move around the room, taking in the minimalistic details. It was clean, spick and span, but there were nothing personal, no trinkets, no pens or paper, nothing except for one photograph.

 

He picked it up, looking at it. On the left was a younger Lieutenant Anderson, a bright smile on his youthful face, and on the right was...also Lieutenant Anderson?

 

_ No _ , his scans corrected. This was the Lieutenant’s deceased twin brother, Richard. They had identical features, except Richard’s eyes were an unreadable grey, hair naturally slicked back, and Connor’s were a warm, melted chocolate shade of brown, his hair slightly curly. Connor’s twin had his arm wrapped around the Lieutenant, a haughty smirk etched on his face, but the warmth in Richard’s eyes belied the familial love he felt for the other male. 

 

Taking another look around the room, he realised with mounting concern (concern? Androids couldn’t feel concerned. They didn’t have emotions) that it was almost as if  _ nobody _ lived in this room—everything was covered in a thick layer of dust, there were no personal belongings besides clothes and the singular photograph. Almost as if the occupant of the room was planning to leave—for good.

 

He carefully logged his findings in Lieutenant Anderson’s file, making to leave the room before the glint of serrated metal caught his eye. Moving to observe the offending weapon properly, he frowned at the fresh, crimson droplets that decorated the blade’s wicked edge, the army knife’s polished metal still gleaming even from where it sat in the pool of blood.

 

**[ >O] TAKE KNIFE**

**[X] LEAVE KNIFE**

 

Before he could register what he was doing, he took it, quickly cleaning the blood off it with a clean corner of the bedsheets and tucking it into his belt. It wouldn’t hurt—he convinced himself that he just didn’t want the Lieutenant to harm himself again, as it would impede his investigation into deviants. That was all. He wasn’t  _ worried _ for the Lieutenant. That would be ridiculous. Androids couldn’t feel.

 

Ignoring his rising stress levels, he left the room and draped the uniform on the door handle before moving into the living room. Aki seemed content with his presence now, the dog allowing him to pet her gently.

 

“Why did you come to my house?” Hank turned at the defeated voice, eyeing the other male, his arms wrapped in bandages, red liquid beginning to soak through. 

 

“I simply wanted to inform you that there is a new case we’ve been assigned to.” Hank answered simply, trying to disregard the little voice that insisted that it was because he was worried.

 

Lieutenant Anderson sighed, rubbing his face. “Okay. Thank you.” He pulled out a pack of cigarettes, lighting it before inhaling deeply.

 

Hank frowned. “Lieutenant, you do know that smoking will decrease your life expectancy? At the rate that you are deteriorating, along with your eating disorders, I estimate that you only have another thirty-six years to go. Half of your life will be wasted.”

 

The human chuckled softly, lifting a shoulder before dropping it. “That’s the idea.” He took another puff, eyeing his dog, who was contentedly sitting on Hank’s stomach. “You like dogs?”

 

“Yes, but I think I especially prefer Aki.” 

 

The Lieutenant smiled slightly. “Her name is actually Akari. I call her Aki for short.”

 

Hank took a deep (unnecessary) breath, cutting to the chase. “Lieutenant, I noted the photograph next to your bed. Who is your brother, exactly?”

 

Anderson stiffened, inhaling sharply at the unexpected question. “How the fuck is that any of your business?” He demanded sharply, hostility beginning to surface again. 

 

“I apologise. I was simply curious.” Hank dipped his head in assent, watching his companion’s face begin to crumple miserably from the onslaught of memories Hank mentioning his brother had brought upon him.

 

“...Whatever. Just talk about something else, okay? Please.” The human mumbled, expression closed-off yet again as he absent-mindedly ran his hand through Akari’s thick, silky fur. 

 

Hank nodded obediently, filing the taboo subject away for future use. “What about your cuts? I couldn’t help but notice that they were self-inflicted.”

 

The Lieutenant snorted a ironic laugh, glancing at the floor uncomfortably as he took another puff of his cigarette. “You’re really hitting me where it hurts today, huh? What do you want to know about it? You need tips or something?”

 

“No, Lieutenant. I was simply curious as to why you choose to use such a destructive method of coping. If I had not arrived, there was a 31% chance of you bleeding out, a dangerously high number for something with such high stakes.”

 

“Easiest way to die without feeling guilty. Not like anyone would miss me anyways.” He gave Akari a fond look, scratching behind her ears lovingly. “Akari’s gonna go live with my friend when it happens. She’ll be taken care of, don’t you worry about that.”

 

_ When _ it happens. Not  _ if _ it happens. Hank’s LED cycled yellow-red. That would be detrimental to his mission. “Lieutenant Anderson…” He started, but the other male’s face had become a mask again. What had caused the sudden change in personality?

 

“ _ Don’t _ call me Anderson.” The Lieutenant’s tone was acidic, knife-sharp. Hank tilted his head to the side, uncomprehending. 

 

“Is it not your name?” 

 

The simple question seemed to cause more damage, the Lieutenant standing up and yanking his coat off the rack with an unnecessarily violent tug. “We’ve got a case, right? Get to it. And it’s Lieutenant, or...or Connor.  _ Understand _ ?” Not waiting for an answer, the human strode out of his house after giving Akari one last firm pat, getting into the driver’s seat and impatiently waiting for Hank.

 

Captain Fowler had also refrained from calling the Lieutenant by his last name, Hank remembered, even when Connor had been pushing the boundaries of insubordination. Filing away the information to be revised at a later date, Hank forced his LED to return to its former serene blue. There would be more time later to question the Lieutenant, and besides, he was right—they were wasting daylight. “Yes, Lieutenant.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> me?? updating on the same day??? who possessed me??  
> i actually completed this the same time i did the first chapter; i wanted to hold this chapter back a week to...idk, get more people interested but FUCK it

**Author's Note:**

> ugh i’m sorry i suck bye


End file.
